Nury Martinez Resigns As City Council President After Leaked Recordings Of Racist Comments
City Council President Nury Martinez has resigned from her post as President, after recordings of conversations including racist remarks among other contentious statements with colleagues were leaked over the weekend. It all started last October, Council President Nury Martinez spoke with fellow Councilmembers Kevin de León and Gil Cedillo and L.A. County Federation of Labor President Ron Herrera. They were talking about their frustrations with redistricting efforts in the city. Audio of the conversation was posted to Reddit earlier this month by an unknown source, and first reported by the Los Angeles Times. The group discussed their need to maintain strong Latino representation on the council. About 48% of L.A.’s total population is Latino. Four of the 15 city council members are Latino and three participated in this conversation. When it came to Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón, Martinez said: “F—- that guy, he’s with the Blacks.” Martinez also said extremely racist, derogatory things about Bonin’s adopted Black son as she recounted being on an MLK Jr. parade float together.
Today on AirTalk, we’re joined by Fernando Guerra, professor of political science and Chicano/Latin studies and director of the Center for the Study of Los Angeles at Loyola Marymount University, Sara Sadhwani, politics professor at Pomona College and commissioner on the 2020 Citizens Redistricting Commission, Jody Armour, professor of law at the University of Southern California, Jan Perry, former LA city councilmember from 2001-2013 and candidate for the 37th congressional district, Gustavo Arrellano, columnist for the LA Times, his latest column is “Nury Martinez’s rant reveals the worst enemy of Latino political power: ourselves” and Nithya Raman, Los Angeles City COuncilmember for the 4th District, whose district’s boundaries were one of the topics discussed in the leaked audio.
With files from LAist. Read the full story here.
Proposition 1: What’s The Best Approach To Defining Reproductive Rights?
Following the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, the state of California created legislation as a way to solidify abortion access in its own constitution. The proposed constitutional amendment, on ballots as Proposition 1, would make the option of an abortion a fundamental right, as well the ability to choose or refuse contraceptives. The broadly-worded language used in the proposition though has created some division in the blue state. Those in support of the measure say it provides support to existing laws on reproductive freedom, while those opposed claim it would actually change current policies.
Today on AirTalk, we lay out both sides of Proposition 1 from a legal standpoint with trial & pro-bono civil rights attorney ,Christopher Bakes, and Cary Franklin, UCLA constitutional law professor & director of its Center on Reproductive Health, Law, and Policy.
With A Plan To Save The Lake Rejected, What's Next For The Salton Sea?
A seven-member independent review panel has rejected a handful of proposals aimed at replenishing the dwindling water supply of the Salton Sea by importing desalinated water off the gulf of California. The panel said that importing ocean water was unfeasible, and called for a mixture of desalinating the water of the lake itself and urging local farmers to fallow their land to reduce their water use. The sea's water level has dropped by 11 feet since 2003, exposing thousands of acres of dry sea bed that has caused plumes of asthma-inducing dust to plague the region. The decline of the sea has also impacted the local and global ecosystem, with fish struggling to survive in its salty waters and migratory birds losing a key feeding ground. California has a 10-year plan to improve various aspects of the sea, but it faced years of delay before beginning restoration projects. At the same time, the southern portion of the lake is thought to hold one third of the world's current potential lithium supply, and the state has been investigating ways to tap into this supply of the critical resource.
Joining Larry to discuss the various plights the Salton Sea is facing, it's impact on local communities and wildlife, as well as its potential as a lithium source is environmental studies professor at UC Santa Cruz who led the Salton Sea Independent Review panel’s research team Brent Haddad and senior environment reporter for The Desert Sun Janet Wilson.
What The Rise Of Black Men Who Play Football’s Most Important Position Means For America
For a long time in professional football, only white men played the quarterback position. As ESPN’s Andscape Senior NFL Writer Jason Reid explains in his new book “The Rise of the Black Quarterback: What It Means For America,” Black quarterbacks entering the pros from college at the time were told to switch positions or they wouldn’t be drafted, that they lacked the smarts and work ethic to run a professional offense. Reid’s book tells the stories of Black quarterbacks like Marlin Briscoe, George Taliaferro, Eldridge Dickey and those who followed in their path, who took the field and changed the game of football despite the racist tropes they were told and the hate they received, and paved the way for a new generation of Black quarterbacks like Lamar Jackson, Patrick Mahomes Kyler Murray, and so many others who are changing the game in their own way today.
Today on AirTalk, Jason Reid joins Larry to talk about his new book, to share and celebrate the stories of Black quarterbacks then and now and talk about why instances like the NFL’s handling of Colin Kaepernick’s protests against systemic racism and police brutality show that there’s still a long way to go towards achieving equality.